IOWA CITY — Natalie Henson got her revenge, but Pleasant Valley Golf Course returned the favor.

The Marshalltown High School senior scored the only sub-par round of the second day of the Iowa Girls’ High School State Golf Tournament on Friday, shooting 74-71–145 to pull herself up from seventh place to third in her final competition as a Bobcat.

A four-time state qualifier, Henson earned her third-straight state meet medal and smiled because of it. In the back of her competitive mind, however, there was more out there to be taken.

“Third is still really good,” she shrugged. “There are some really great golfers here. I mean, I’m happy with third, but I did want to do better.

“You can’t go into a tournament thinking ‘I should be the one’ because that’s just bad character. Morgan (Rupp) and Ainsley (Wilson) are great players, I knew that going into this, and they just played better.”

Rupp, of Linn-Mar, claimed her third-straight individual state championship by shooting 69-72–141, while Wilson went 68-74–142 for second place. Wilson, a freshman from Iowa City West, was the leader after Thursday’s opening round of 68.

Henson, who had a pair of double bogeys during the first 18 holes, capitalized on her chances at redemption. Still, it wasn’t enough to cover the six-stroke deficit she faced going into Friday’s finale.

“It was just my front nine that took me out, but I was able to bounce back from it,” Henson said.

Marshalltown’s Omaha-bound standout played 1-under on the front nine on Friday to account for a five-stroke swing from a day earlier. Having double-bogeyed the par-4 seventh hole 24 hours earlier, Henson pulled out her driver and reached the green off the tee box.

She sank a 15-foot eagle putt to put her at 1-under for the day.

Four holes later, a bogey on the par-5 11th hole accounted for a three-stroke swing in the other direction having eagled the hole a day earlier.

That’s golf.

“Yeah, I had a poor club selection and I had to pay the price,” Henson said of the bogey on 11. “But I was able to get back and keep playing.”

Henson played her last seven holes at 1-under, birdieing the par-5 15th for the second day in a row, and she carded a par on the 18th and final hole to collect a two-stroke advantage from the day before.

She had multiple birdie opportunities throughout the day, which is all you can ask for, she said.

“I feel like I just barely missed,” she said. “Either I made it or I barely missed on the edge of all my birdie putts, so that really helped.”

Henson earned her third all-state medal with Friday’s result, following up her first three seasons of finishing 22nd, ninth and fourth at state with her best one yet.

“What a career to begin with and you look at where she was at as a freshman and just continuing to get better and better,” said MHS head coach Lucas Johnson. “This season, any time she teed up, it was going to be in play to come out on top. She’s just a tremendous kid with a great work ethic who deserves all the accolades that she’s gotten and that she’s going to get in the future.”

Henson’s future college coach at the University of Nebraska-Omaha — Victoria Grasso — was on site to follow around her future Maverick. Grasso was a three-time state champion at Ankeny Christian Academy.

Donning the black and red of Omaha will demand a new wardrobe for Henson, who has proudly sported the blue and red of Marshalltown for as long as she can remember.

“It’s kind of heartbreaking,” Henson said. “I feel like I’ve been a Bobcat golfer for so long. I started with the middle school program and now I’m done. I won’t have Bill (Benda), I won’t have (Lucas) Johnson or the team — it’s crazy to think. I love everything about being a Bobcat.”

Iowa Girls High School State Golf Tournament

CLASS 4A

At Iowa City

Pleasant Valley Golf Course, par 72

Team Standings — 1. Ames 318-315–633, 2. (tie) Waukee Northwest 309-325–634, Pleasant Valley 320-314–634, 4. Cedar Rapids Washington 331-336–667, 5. (tie) Western Dubuque 333-341–674, Cedar Falls 347-3327–674, 7. Norwalk 330-345–675, 8. Bettendorf 337-349–686, 9. Indianola 347-346–693, 10. Iowa City West 350-347–697.

Individual (top 10) — 1. Morgan Rupp, Linn-Mar, 69-72–141; 2. Ainsley Wilson, ICW, 68-74–142; 3. Natalie Henson, Marshalltown, 74-71–145; 4. Camille Wood, PV, 71-75–146; 5. Kylie Wachtl, CR Prairie, 71-75–146; 6. Adalyn Wiig, WNW, 72-74–146; 7. Saleah Vivanh Vong, Des Moines East/North, 74-75–149; 8. Jane Petersen, CRW, 73-77–150; 9. Emersen Motl, AMES, 73-77–150; 10. Rylee Brockhouse, Muscatine, 77-76–153.